Multi-City Police Pursuit of Burglary Suspects Ends in Southwest Minneapolis

A police pursuit of burglary suspects ended with their arrests in Southwest Minneapolis Wednesday after starting in Maple Grove and continuing through Dayton, Champlin, Brooklyn Park and Brooklyn Center, according to authorities.

Officers finally stopped the suspects' vehicle at W. 48th Street and Aldrich Avenue S., Maple Grove Police Capt. Keith Terlinden said. The pursuit was not at high speeds.

The incident comes five days after a motorcyclist died in a collision with a Minneapolis police vehicle that was rushing to the scene of a shooting in which two officers were injured and a burglary suspect killed.

Both May 10, 2013 fatalities, which took place in south Minneapolis about 22 blocks north of where Wednesday's pursuit ended, remain under investigation, Minneapolis Police Chief Janeé Harteau told reporters today.

May 15, 2013 Police Pursuit
Maple Grove resident Grant Holthus saw a car he didn't recognize pull into his neighbor's driveway Wednesday morning.

As he watched, Holthus heard loud knocking repeatedly on his neighbor’s door, noticed an individual push his way into the house and others pulling the car into the garage.

“It seemed suspicious from the beginning. Something definitely didn’t look right—I knew it wasn’t my neighbor's car and I have never seen these people,” he said, later stating it all happened within about a 10 minutes. 

“As soon as they got inside the house, I called 911,” Holthus said. “In less than 60 seconds, police met them as they were pulling out of the driveway.”

It was that 911 call that Maple Grove Police are crediting with three suspects being placed in custody after leading police on a multi-city pursuit Wednesday.

The attempted burglary was reported near 99th Avenue and Norwood Lane in Maple Grove about 10:50 a.m. Wednesday, May 15, according to Maple Grove Police Capt. Keith Terlinden.

When officers arrived at the scene, the suspects were trying to get away. They refused to stop and a pursuit through six cities followed, ending at 48th and Aldrich, according to Terlinden.

Three men are in custody; charges have not yet been filed, Terlinden said, stating some of the suspects have a criminal history.  

“The suspects in this case are wanted for questioning in neighboring jurisdictions, so it’s really an evolving case and we’re trying to put together all of the pieces,” he said. “I’m excited to report this success because of a neighbor that wanted to get involved and called us early.”

“If you see, hear something suspicious—call 911 right away,” Terlinden said.   “It’s important that he called us so quickly.”